Privacy International
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Privacy International (PI) has been instrumental in establishing the modern international privacy movement. The organization was formed in 1990 as a privacy, human rights and civil liberties watchdog. PI has organised campaigns and initiatives in more than fifty countries and is based in London with an office in Washington, D.C..
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[edit] Background
In 1990, in response to a growing number of privacy threats, more than a hundred leading privacy experts and human rights organizations from forty countries linked arms to form a world organisation for the protection of privacy. Members of the new body, including computer professionals, academics, lawyers, journalists, jurists and human rights activists, had a common interest in promoting an international understanding of the importance of privacy and data protection. Meetings of the group, which took the name Privacy International, were held throughout that year in North America, Europe, Asia, and the South Pacific, and members agreed to work toward the establishment of effective privacy protection throughout the world.
The formation of Privacy International was the first successful attempt to establish a structured world focus on this emereging area of human rights. It evolved as an independent, non-government organization with the primary role of advocacy and support. It has an international advisory board with members from over 30 countries, and a Board of Trustees who oversee a team of research and policy staff.
[edit] Campaigns, networking, and research
Privacy International has been most prominent in North America, Europe and Asia, where it has liaised with local human rights organisations to raise awareness about the development of national surveillance systems.
The PI network has also been used by law reform and human rights organisations in more than forty countries to assist local privacy issues. In Thailand and the Philippines, for example, Privacy International worked with local human rights bodies to develop national campaigns against the establishment of government identity card systems. In Canada, New Zealand, the United States, Hungary, Australia, and the United Kingdom it has promoted privacy issues through national media and through public campaigns. In Central and Eastern Europe, PI has been active in promoting government accountability through Freedom of information legislation.
PI also monitors the activities of international organizations, including the European Union, the Council of Europe, and United Nations agencies. It has conducted numerous studies and reports, and provides expert commentary on contemporary policy and technology issues.
[edit] Privacy index
Since 1997 Privacy International in cooperation with the Electronic Privacy Information Center have performed surveys[1] in order to assess how much privacy the country's citizen have from both corporative and government surveillance.[2] The 2006 survey examined all EU countries and 11 other selected countries.
| Yearly Privacy ranking of countries published by Privacy International |
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| Final Score | |
| 4.1-5.0 | Consistently upholds human rights standards |
| 3.6-4.0 | Significant protections and safeguards |
| 3.1-3.5 | Adequate safeguards against abuse |
| 2.6-3.0 | Some safeguards but weakened protections |
| 2.1-2.5 | Systemic failure to uphold safeguards |
| 1.6-2.0 | Extensive surveillance societies |
| 1.1-1.5 | Endemic surveillance societies |
[edit] Structure and finances
Privacy International has received funding and support from a range of Foundations, academic establishments and non-government organisations. These include the Soros Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the Fund for Constitutional Government, the Stern Foundation, the Privacy Foundation, the German Marshall Fund, and the University of New South Wales. The organisation is also minimally financed through contributions. Privacy International is an independent non-profit organization chartered in the UK. Its US organization is administered through the Fund for Constitutional Government in Washington DC.
[edit] References
- ^ Privacy International. Ratings Table of EU and Leading Surveillance Societies
- ^ Privacy International. Briefing paper on the ratings table
